New member here, need help right away.

[David DB]

Hi Everyone,

Before I get into my introduction I just want to warn everyone that I am not very computer or internet savvy. I have never been on any kind of forum or facebook or anything like this before so if I make a mistake I assure you it is because I have no idea what I am doing!! I will try to provide as much information and detail in my introduction as possible.

I live in New Hampshire and I am in NO WAY an expert of any kind and do not know really anything about reptiles, this guy came to me by chance and I took him in rather than let him die. So I have what I believe is a Texas tortoise (based on research I have done and looking at other pictures) his name is Kurt. I have a friend who is a realtor and was showing a house and found the little guy in a cardboard box abandoned in an empty house. He did not want him so I took him in. He looks to be pretty badly pyramided (A common problem related to diet from what I understand??). I have had him for about a year now.

I keep him in a clear low sided storage container about 2.5' X 3.5' with a cardboard box for a hide, a large water dish for drinking/bathing, I have a light that I got from a large box pet store for light (not sure what kind of bulb?), I feed him organic spring mix in the winter sprinkled with calcium supplement (no lettuce of any kind), I do not really ever do fruits of any kind either. The substrate material is a shredded cardboard material. I do let him wander around my place when I am home. I pick him up and handle him very often, he has NO problem with this, he never gets nervous or pees or poops. I bring him many places and he is great in the car and really everywhere. When it got warm out I immediately started bringing him outside and letting him eat grass, clover, and dandelions (those are the only plants that seem to be on all of the care guides that I have read that I actually know what they look like).

So what I need help with is a situation that recently came up involving his poop. I am really not sure where to post this could someone help?

 

[meech008]

Hey there and welcome! It sounds to me like you could use this thread http://www.tortoiseforum.org/index.php?threads/45180/
It helped me tremendously when I got my Russian! Does the bulb look like a swirl? Like one of those Flourescent light bulbs? Those can hurt their eyes. Your substrate sounds like it's going to be too dry for your little guy. I'm not very familiar with Texas tortoises but that could be why he is pyramided, he's not being kept in a humid enough enviornment. There are many threads on this site that go over that in detail just do a quick search! I don't recommend letting him roam around your house, there are many dangers that we don't often realize are there. One members tort swallowed a needle! I'm sure others will be on here shortly to add to what I've said. If you can, post some pictures of your sweet little guy and his enclosure, that will also help with advice!

 

[meech008]

http://www.tortoiseforum.org/index.php?threads/129862/ this gives you step by step info 9n how to upload pictures to the forum!

 

[David DB]

 

[David DB]

These are the ones I have at the moment. I will definitely read that guide as well. Any recommendations on where to post the question about his poop that I have?

 

[Lyn W]

Hi David and welcome to the best forum there is for up to date information about all aspects of tort keeping.
How big and heavy is he?
I have a leopard tortoise so can't really offer advice specifically for yours but some things are the same for all torts.
They all need to be kept warm and need uvb in order to digest their food and absorb the good things from it, so if he is having a problem with pooping it could be that he isn't warm enough or that he has been eating the cardboard which has affected his gut.
I think you need to change that asap!
Do you give warm soaks to help with his hydration?
If you give a few more details about the problem you will get lots of tailor made advice.

 

[Lyn W]

These are the ones I have at the moment. I will definitely read that guide as well. Any recommendations on where to post the question about his poop that I have?

The tortoise health section or carry on here.

 

[David DB]

He is about 4.5" long and 3" wide, I am not sure about the weight, I do not have a scale that goes that low. I will figure out how to get that information. I will get a UVB bulb immediately. I have never seen him eat the cardboard, but I trust your knowledge. I will change that too.

As far as the concern I am having: In the beginning of August I noticed him walking around in his enclosure with a poop about an inch long hanging out of his butt. I grabbed a napkin and gently pulled it out (another inch or so came out). About 10 days ago I noticed that I had not seen any poop in his enclosure for a few days so I got concerned. In the 13 months prior he has always pooped around 1 or 2 times a week until then. I got concerned so I went online and googled and started doing the warm soaks, sure enough 3 days ago he pooped, then again last night more poop. Again another poop hanging out of his butt last night, again I gently pulled it out (again another inch or so). Well, today I read that doing that can be harmful and I am just beside myself at the thought of doing anything that could harm him. I just wanted to know if there is anything I should do from here? Bring him to the vets? Monitor him? X-rays? I have grown EXTREMELY fond of him and I feel terrible about this. I just want to give him the best possible life I can. Thanks

 

[meech008]

He is about 4.5" long and 3" wide, I am not sure about the weight, I do not have a scale that goes that low. I will figure out how to get that information. I will get a UVB bulb immediately. I have never seen him eat the cardboard, but I trust your knowledge. I will change that too.

As far as the concern I am having: In the beginning of August I noticed him walking around in his enclosure with a poop about an inch long hanging out of his butt. I grabbed a napkin and gently pulled it out (another inch or so came out). About 10 days ago I noticed that I had not seen any poop in his enclosure for a few days so I got concerned. In the 13 months prior he has always pooped around 1 or 2 times a week until then. I got concerned so I went online and googled and started doing the warm soaks, sure enough 3 days ago he pooped, then again last night more poop. Again another poop hanging out of his butt last night, again I gently pulled it out (again another inch or so). Well, today I read that doing that can be harmful and I am just beside myself at the thought of doing anything that could harm him. I just wanted to know if there is anything I should do from here? Bring him to the vets? Monitor him? X-rays? I have grown EXTREMELY fond of him and I feel terrible about this. I just want to give him the best possible life I can. Thanks

His poops might be hard and having a hard time because he's dehydrated. How often do you soak him? If you don't I'd suggest starting that practice right away. I put my Russian in a tub with sides taller than he can get out of. I put him in it with warm water that comes up to where his bottom shell meets his top shell. I keep him in the water for around 20-30 mins

 

[Lyn W]

I am so glad you want to do your best for your tort and are open to suggestions, you may get replies you don't like but everyone here is passionate about torts and just want them to be cared for properly.
I have seen advice here that you can gently clean a mucky tail with a moist cotton bud, which I think is a good thing to do to avoid an issue with flies etc. Does he seem ok in himself? Just don't pull anything too hard in case he has ingested something he shouldn't which is still in his gut. Maybe @Tom or @yvonne who are both very experienced keepers will be more help than me here, so I have tagged them.
A good bulb used by many keepers is called a mercury vapour bulb (MVB) I use an Arcadia Mini D3 bulb. This gives heat, light and uva/b in one bulb. There are other brands available, but as meech said just make sure it is not a coil or long thin loop style cfl as these are harmful to torts eyes. It is better to hang them over the enclosure rather than use the side clamps which have been known to fail and cause fires. Also the amount of uvb is diminished if the lamp is at an angle. I was advised to hang it about 10 inches above the torts shell, but you can adjust the temp by raising or lowering it. A temperature gun will be a great help to you in getting that right. What do you use for night heat?

I do think your enclosure is a bit small for the size of tort you have there. A general consensus is that 4' x 8' is the minimum space they should have. They are wandering animals and need to be able to move about in a safe place to help digestion, so as much space as you can provide will probably help his poop problem too, but wandering around the house is very risky.
If you have a look at the enclosures thread that is full of good ideas. e.g. some people just use decent sized bookshelves lined with shower curtains and maybe with some plexiglass partially on top to help with humidity..

 

[meech008]

It'd probably be good to take him to a good tortoise vet near you anyway sort of a "well baby" check up if you will.

 

[Lyn W]

It'd probably be good to take him to a good tortoise vet near you anyway sort of a "well baby" check up if you will.

Agreed - take a sample of faeces to have it checked for parasites/worms which could be part of his problem.

 

[David DB]

Ok, so soaking, getting a new bulb (the current one is not a coil type just to clarify), and changing the enclosure. I appreciate all of the helpful feedback and advice. I am learning a lot. He actually seems great, tons of energy, eating a lot. I just saw somewhere on the internet today that pulling out the poop can harm them and their little internals so I got real worried and wanted to ask for some advice. The LAST thing I would ever want to do is harm him in any way. I will bring him to a vet to have a checkup done if you experts think that is a good idea. Here is my other concern:

I have been told by a few people (I have NO idea what their knowledge base is, or where they got this information) that the because the Texas tortoise is a protected species vets are required to report that to someone (not sure who?) and you will get fined, or in trouble, or they will take away your guy?? Like I said in the beginning, I did not ask for this guy and have no previous reptile experience but I have made a commitment to him and I feel strongly about doing whatever I can/have to do to make sure he is happy and healthy.

Also, I have NO idea where to bring him. I have googled some reptile and exotic vets in my area. I just do not have any experience with them so I am nervous to let anyone take my kid if you know what I mean!!

 

[David DB]

....And also get a poop sample. Ha Ha

 

[Speedy-1]

Hi and welcome David .

 

[Lyn W]

I can't help with the US laws as I'm in the UK but hopefully someone with far more experience will be able to tell you about that and help definitely ID your tort.
I don't consider myself an expert at all - in fact far from it! I am still very much a novice - I was thrown in the deep end with a rescued tort too, and had a very steep learning curve which meant making lots of changes along the way. I have read and searched and asked questions here and listened to all the advice. When you have lots of people saying the same things you soon get to know the basic dos and don'ts. I still learn something new everyday form other peoples' mistakes or tried and tested ideas that are shared here.
I have just been very open to learning as much as I can and prepared to do whatever it takes to make sure my tort is happy and healthy, and I think you feel the same which is great!
Another good website you will find useful is www.thetortoisetable.org.uk this will tell you which plants are safe or not for your torts diet or to use as ground cover for him in his enclosure.
Some vets may have herpetologists on their staff rather than be specifically for reptiles so it may be worth ringing around.

 

[Grandpa Turtle 144]

Hello David

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi David, and welcome to the Forum!

I'll admit that Kurt looks like a Texas tortoise, however, I'm vascilainting between Texas (Gopherus berlandieri) and Greek (Testudo graeca) Let's send a shout-out to @HermanniChris . He's very good at being able to tell what species tortoise we throw at him. Also, can we please see a picture of the tortoise's underside?

Kurt is pyramided due to being raised in a dry environment. And he's still being kept pretty dry. You should be soaking him in warm water for about 15 minutes daily for a month or so, then you can taper off to a couple times a week. Also, try to find a substrate that you can moisten. The kind you're using is too dry. I like orchid bark.

Once you start the daily warm water soaks, the poop issue should resolve itself. To help it along, for a little while, feed him aloe or canned pumpkin (Not pie mix) or cucumbers...something wet like that to soften up his stool.

 

[HermanniChris]

It looks berlanideri to me too. Definitely not a Greek tortoise. Can you post a plastron photo?

 

[Tidgy's Dad]

Hello, David and a very warm welcome to Tortoise Forum.
he may be rather pyramided , poor chap, but he's still a lovely looking chap, in my opinion.
Nice face and expression!